Forever Star Wars Episode X: Galactic Excursions Part 1

The Last Jedi: What’s in a Name

What’s in a name? It is a generations old question that we may never get the answer to, but we certainly will try.

Names have always been important. Religions have used names to mean something more (Immanuel: God with us), and ask any son who is named after his father or grandfather what it is like to try to uphold, or overcome, that name.

So it is no shock that the Internet almost broke when the new Star Wars film, Episode VII, revealed its name. Its name that had been hiding in plain sight in the crawl of Episode VII: The Last Jedi.

The features of each trilogy.

Star Wars names have always been very plain, that is until one digs a little deeper.

Episode I: The Phantom Menace

Obvious: Palpatine is working behind the scenes as a phantom menace.

Deeper level: The Jedi have the phantom menace of arrogance and attachment to a code.

Episode II: Attack of the Clones

Obvious: The clones attack on Geonosis to kick off the Clone War.

Deeper level: The clones are attacking the Jedi by making them sacrifice their own beliefs for political gain.

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith

Obvious: The Sith get their revenge by taking over the galaxy and destroying the Jedi.

Deeper level: The revenge on the Sith is that their plan, hatched for a thousand years, has a crack in it (re: Luke and Leia)

Episode IV: A New Hope

Obvious: Luke brings a new hope to the galaxy by starting his Jedi training.

Deeper level: The rise of the Rebellion brings a new hope because it catalyzes the galaxy against the Empire on a whole new level.

Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back

Obvious: The Empire strikes against the Rebellion during the Battle of Hoth.

Deeper level: The Empire strikes back against its perceived weakness by allowing the Sith side of it to have more prominence.

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi

Obvious: Luke brings the Jedi back by defeating the Sith.

Deeper level: Anakin Skywalker is the Jedi that returns, from his hiatus as Darth Vader.

Episode VII: The Force Awakens

Obvious: The Force is awakened by Rey starting her hero’s journey.

Deeper level: Rey coming to prominence and the pursuit of Luke Skywalker awaken the light side of the Force within Kylo Ren, which causes his internal struggle.

So what could this possibly mean for Episode VIII: The Last Jedi?

Obvious: Luke Skywalker, the last of the Jedi (singular).

Deeper level: Luke and Rey, the last of the Jedi (plural).

Director Rian Johnson shared this image via Instagram.

However, if the ring theory holds true, this might not fit with the films that build the climax of each trilogy (aka when things are at their worst). In Empire, Darth Vader pretty much whoops up on the Rebels, especially Han, Luke, and Leia. In Clones, the war that will bring the galaxy to its knees begins. So again, we must ask what this means for The Last Jedi?

We know that this film will begin right after the end of Episode VII, where things were very much in the air. It is possible that Rey will have to do a lot of convincing to get Luke to train her, and therefore The Last Jedi points more towards the last hope of a new Jedi Order. The Jedi go from just Luke to Luke and Rey. From there it could go many directions.

But, if the ring theory is something Lucasfilm is using as a guide for this new trilogy, we need something to go terribly wrong. Luke dying ideas aside, there is a lot that could happen. We know that Snoke is going to be completing Kylo Ren’s training, so what if The Last Jedi somehow refers to his more drastic slide to the dark and ergo the last Jedi, Ben Solo, falling completely from his true path. It could also refer to the death of the Jedi as a whole, with Luke and Rey having to establish something new, while at the same time a war breaks out between the Resistance and the First Order that forces their hand into action.

Fan theories can, and will, go on all the way until December 15. But regardless, with a red logo (aka a Sith color), the ring theory, and the power names have, The Last Jedi holds a lot of promise.